Demountable wheel-rim.



T. S. YORK.

DEMDUNTABLE WHEEL RIM.

APPLICATION FILED use. 16. ms.

Patented June 4, 1918.

Z SHEET$SHEET l T. S. YORK.

DEMUUNTABLE WHEELRIM.

APPUCATION mso 05c. 16. ms.

Patented June 4, 1918. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 15 to permit the tire to betudinally of the rim, of the end-portions of .VUNITED STATESPATENm'oFmcE.

rmorfiv s. Yonmor KAVERHILL, MASSACHUSETTS, assrcmoa 'ro LOUIS H. HARRI-HAN, or HAVEBHILL, MASSACHUSETTS, rnusrnn ron sun Your, w. sco'r'rPETERS, SAMUE mnssaonosnrrs.

1. E. case, am) 31mm: M. wm'rnnoosn, ALL or HAVERHILL,

nnmotm'msnn W EEL-Jam.

Application filed December 1a, 1916. Serial No, 137,295.

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, TIMOTHY S. YoRK,

alcitizen of the United States, residing at Haverhill in the county ofEssex and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvemerit inDemountable Wheel-Rims,

the following is a specification.

This invention relates to that class of de mountable rims for automobilewheels in of which which the tire is retained in position thereon bysidcflanges which project radially and form an annular groove in the outersurface of the rim, and in which means are provided .for reducing itsdiameter at certain points, placed thereon and to be removed.

' The object of my invention is to provide a demountable rim, .of theabove-described V character, in which a portion thereof may be soreadily colla used, when the rim is demount- .ed,,to permit thetire tobe easily ut on and removed, and which will enable 1; e rim to beexpanded after the tire has been Placed thereon, so that it may bestretched tightly thereon, the construction being such that when the rimis on the wheel it -will be practically as rigid as if it were ofintegral. constructiun throughout.

1 accomplish this object by the means g0 shown in the accompanyingdrawings, in

' which a preferred embodiment of my invention. is'shown, and in whichFigure 1 is a side elevation showing the parts in normal position. i

Figs. 2 and 3 are similar views showing the arts indifi'erent positions.

Fig. 4 is. a detail view of a portion of the inner periphery of the rim.

Figs. 5, 6, and 7 are transverse'sectional views. on the lines 5-5, 6-6,and 7-7, re-

speetively, of Fig. 1.

Figs. 8 and 9 are detail views of the inner and outer sides,respectively, of the endportions of the two connecting sections.

Fig. 10 is a detail sectional view, longithe two abutting sections.

According to my nvention the corn lete rim is composed of three abuttisections,

' (15:6 and 0, each being of integra construcapproximately two-thirds ofthe circumference, or more than a semi-circumference, together with thesection b, which, as hereinafter described, is hinged to oneend of saidsectidn a, are hereinafter termed the main section, the section b, infunction, being merel an inwardly yieldable end portion of t e sectiona. The section 0 is termed the complemental section, as it fills in orspans the space between the ends of the main rim-portion.

As shown in the drawinggthe section b has a lap joint connection withsection a, an end-portion b, on said section 6, being extended within acorresponding overlapping portion a, on section a, each abutting againstcorrespondin shoulders on the other, and the portion being connected'atits end to the adjacent portion of section 'a, against which it abuts,by a. hinge e arranged to a and the bottom 0 said recess, or the innerside of the end-portion a said link being of the same depth and width assaid recess,

so that, when said link is held against the end portion a it will .forma con tinuation'of the sides and innerperiphery of the rim. The hingedend of link 9 is arranged to extend divergently with relation to theshoulder a, from the hinge h, so that said link may swin inwardly to asuitable extent. The comp emental rim-section c is connected at one end,by a-hinge j, to the opposite end of link 9, the pivot of which is atthe inner periphery of the rim, the adjacent ends of said section andlink extending divergently from said pivot, to permit section a to beswung oppositely on the hinge j to the 'direction in which the link mabe swung on hinge h. The len h of the ink g is somewhat less than t elength of the recess formed within the end-portion a, and the section cis formed with a reduced portion at its hinged end which is adapted tooccupy Patented June 4, 1918.

against the end face a,

the portion of said recess not occupied by said link, so that saidportion a overlaps both link and section a, the latter also having aninclined shoulder adapted to fit when in normal po sition. The freeend-portion of the section b is recessed on its inner side to receive atongue 0' on the section .0, said end-portion bein formed to provide endshoulders b, 6 the inner shoulder I) being extended obliquely to aradius to form an acute angle between it and the longitudinal face bwhich extends between said shoulders, an

in the vertex of ing Ir; is arranged in transverse position, so that aportion, slightly less than half, of its circumference, is exposed. Theadjacent or free end of said section 0 is correspondingly formed, exceptthat the angle between its oblique end shoulder a, and its longitudinalface 0 is somewhat less than the angle between the faces I) and b, topermit limited swinging movement between the latter, said section 0 alsohaving a concaved seat 0 at itsend arranged to fit against the bearingpin is.

The inner side of the end-portion a is provided with a longitudinallyand inwardly extending lug m in the middle thereof, and the adjacentsides of the section a and link 9 are grooved to receive said lug tohold them against relative lateral strain. The inner side oi the face bis also provided with a similarly disposed lug n which is arranged to bereceived in a corre-.

sponding groove in the face 0 of the section c. A locking screw 0 isarranged to extend from tin =nner side of the rim through the end *tionof section a, which is overlapped by t; end-portion of section b, and tobe threaded into the latter, and in like manner, a screw p is arrangedto extend through the opposite endportion of said section 0, adjacentits hinge connection with link g, and into the end-portion a of sectiona to lock said sectionsrigidly together. In" like manner a screw 1' maybe employed at the joint between the sections a and b for generalstrengthening purposes. In addition to giving increased rigidity to theparts and providing means to relieve the joints and connecting hingesfrom transverse strain, the screw or bolt 0, which looks the end of thesection 0 to the section b, is further advantageous in case the tireshould be torn from the rim, while on the wheel, as it would reventlongitudinal separation of the members I) and c and possible dislod mentof the rim which it is mounted.

Before the tire is placed on the rim, the toggle formed by link g andsection a is broken, or said parts are drawn inward at their point ofconnection, thus disengaging section cfrom the endof section b, so

from the wheel on which a round pin or bearthat it may be swung inward,and then the section b is swung inward against the toggle, asillustrated in Fig. 2, thus reducing the diameter of the rim at thispoint. The tire is then placed in position on the section a, and, bypressing in the portion of the tire adjacent the hinged sections, theportions of the tire adjacent the ends of the section a will be sprungoutwardly sufliciently to permit the tire to be easily placed inposition in the groove of said section a, as indicated by the dotted andfull line positions of Fig. 2. The section b is then swung outwardlyagainst the inner side of the tire and the section 0 is swung outwardly,while'the link g is held in its inward position, so that said sectionsand link are held at an angle, then the concave seat 0 of the section 0is placed against the bearing pin It, so that the parts are held in theposition of Fig. 3. Then outward pressure 18 applied to the end of linkso that it is swung toward the end-portion a, thereby causing thesection 0 to be pushed longitudinally against the end of section b, asit is-swung outwardly toward the tire, and, at the same time, causingthe section b to be pressed outwardly and forced firmly against thetire, so that the ends of the section a, which is preferably of somewhatresilient material, are sprung apart by the toggle action of the section0 and link g, the'whole rim being1 pressed out to its normal position,by t e time the tog le is straightened or pressed against the en-portion a, causing the tire to be stretched tightly thereon, by astrong leverage action. As the toggle Joint is pressed outwardly itbecomes straightened just before the link g is swung against theendortion a, that is, when the axial line of t e hinge j, which connectssaid link to the section 0, passes the straight line extending from theaxis of the hinge h to the axis about which the opposite end of section0 is swinging, located at the center of the bearing pin in, at whichpoint the stretching effect on the tire due to the toggle action, is at.its maximum. It follows, therefore, that the toggle will be outwardlyactuated by the resilience of the tire during the remainder of itsoutward swinging movement, and will thus be held pressed firmly againstthe end-portion a, when in normal osition, b the resilience of the tire,said emf ortion t us acting to prevent the toggle rom being forced outbeyond an exactly concentric position. In removing the tire it willtherefore be necessary to force the toggle joint inward against thecontracting action of the tire, so that the latter willhave to beslightly stretched up to the point where the three joints of the toggleare in line, or the point where the toggle is exactly straight.

t will be noted that the i clination of the end face a is toward thepivot h of the link 9, and at such an angle that the section 0 1s pushedin a direction nearly parallel thereto, as its correspondingly inclinedface is swung toward it so that said faces slide into en agement as thesection is finally pushed into'normal position.

While the tire, by its resilience, will. hold the parts in the normalposition of Fig. 1, and while the danger of displacement of the parts isr mparatively sli ht, the construction permits the joints to materiallystrengthened after the tire has been stretched on the rim and before ithas been placed on the wheel, as by passing screws through the,

overlapping portions of the joints from the inner side of the rim. Asshown in Figs. 6, 7 and 1G screws 0 and p are passed through the section(2 adjacent its ends, into the rim end-portions b and a respectively. Aconstruction is thus provided which is, for all practical purposes, asrigid as a continuous rim. 1

. While the rim members a and I) ma made of resilient material and thejoint therebetween might, under these conditions, be omitted, in thecase of a very light rim, yet in practice such anarrangement is notconsidered desirable, for the reason that such rims are'easil'y bent outof shape. The invention is, therefore, particularly advantageous inconnection with a heavy, rigid, or non-resilient rim in which the mainrim portion is divided into two members and connected by a hinged jointat some point at a substantial distance from the ends thereof, as shown,so that this portion may be collapsed to a suflicient extent to permit aheavy tire to be easily placed thereon.

As the end-portion a extends over, or

overlaps the joint or hinge j between the, link 9 and rim section a, italso eifectively prevents inward pressure on the rim oppo site saidhinge, which would be caused by inflation of the tires, fromcausing thetoggle to be forced inward at its joint j.

I claim 1. A wheel rim having a peripheral tirereceiving groove, andcomprising a main rim-portion having an inwardly yicldable end-portion,a complemental rim-section adapted to span the space between the ends ofsaid main rim-portion and, at one end pivotally to engage thecorresponding end thereof, a link having its ends pivotally engaged withsaid complemental section and said main rim-portion respectivelyadjacent the opposite ends thereo to form an in wardly breaking toggle,and means, on the end-portion of the main rim-portion with which thetoggle is engaged, to hold the same against outward swinging movement ata predetermined point.

2. A wheel rim having an exteriorly disposed, tire-receiving groove andcomprising a main rim-portion and a complemental rimbe f section, a linkconnected at one end to said complemental section, and at the othe'rtosaid main rim-portion adjacent one end thereof, and arranged to permitinward swinging of said complemental section when the opposite end ofthe latter from said link is in position to engage the main rim-portionat 'its opposite end from that to which said link is connected, saidmain rim-portion having an extension rigid therewith and overlappingsaid link, and locking means arranged to engage said extensionand saidcomplemental section to hold the latter in normal position.

' 3. A wheel rim having an exteriorly disposed, tire receiving grooveand comprising a main rim-portion, having an inwardly yieldableend-portion, and a complemental rim-section, said complemental sectionhaving a pivotalbearing seat interposed be- 'tween one end thereof andone end-portion of said main rim-portion, and having a link connectionbetween the opposite end thereof, and the opposite end-portion of saidmain rim-portion, forming a toggle arranged to break inwardly when saidcomplemental section is in normal position, said main rim-portion havinga rigid extension exteriorly overlapping said link to hold the sameagainst outward swinging movement beyond a position in which the toggle.is straightened.

4. A wheel rim having an exteriorly dis posed, tire-receiving groove andcomprising a main rim-portion having one end-portion thereof recessedfrom its inner periphery, and forming a transverse shoulder extendingfrom the inner peripheral surface thereof to the bottom of said recess,a link having one end pivotally engaged with said shoulder at the bottomof said recessand adapted to be held against said bottom when in nor;mal position, and a complemental rim-sec tion pivotally connected at oneend to the opposite end of said link and adapted to be engaged at itsopposite-end with the opposite end of said main rim-portion, saidpivotal connection with said link permitting swinging movement thereofaway from the bottom of said recess to disengage said complementalsection from said main rimportion by a longitudinal movement.

5. A wheel rim having an exteriorly disposed, tire-receiving groove andcomprising a main rim-portion having one endortion thereof recessed fromits inner periphery, and forming a transverse shoulder extending fromthe inner peripheral surface thereof to the bottom of said recess, andsaid endportion having an end face extending obliquely inward towardsaid shoulder, a link pivotally connected at one end to Said rimportionat said shoulder and adapted to be swung into said recess, acomplemental rimsection pivotally connected at one end to the 130 'thetoggle, and means on the end opposite end of said link and having ashoulder at its pivotally connected end corre spending in inclination tosaid end face, said parts being constructed to permit the free end ofsaid com lemental section to be forced longitudina 1y into enga ementwith the opposite end portion of sai main rlmportion, to carry its saidshoulder into engagement with said end face as the link is swun intosaid recess.

6. wheel rim having a peripheral tirereceiving groove, and comprising amain rim-portion havin an inwardly yieldable end-portion and acomplemental rim-section adapted to span the space between the ends ofsaid main rim-portion, a link having its ends ivotally engaged with oneend of said comp emental section and the corresponding end of said mainrim-section respectively, and arranged to form, with said complementalsection, an inwardly breaking toggle, the opposite ends of said mainrim-portion and said complemental section having cor responding recesseded projecting portions constructed to permit the end of the complementalsection to be seated against the end of the main rim-portion, and thento be swung transversely into position, while seated, by outwardpressure on the joint of portion of the main rim-portion, with which thetoggle is engaged, to hold the same against outward swinging movement ata predetermined point.

7 A wheel rim having a peripheral tirereceiving groove and comprising apair of rigid, pivotally connected, main rim-section's and a rigidcomplemental rim-section having one end portion adapted pivotally toengage the ad acent end portion of one main section and its oppositeend-portion extending within the adjacent end portion of the other inainsection, so that it is overlapped thereby, and a link pivoted, at oneend, to

the overlapped end of said complemental section and, at its oppositeend, to the overlapping main-section at a i aint sufliciently remotefrom the end of the latter to permit usages the link to lie therewithin,thereby to limit the link against outward swinging movement and preventthe application of inward pressure thereon from without the rim.

8. A wheel rim havin a peripheral tirereceiving oove and colpprislng aair of rigidly, prvotall connee ed mam rim-sections, and a ri icomplemental rim-section having one en portion overlapped b thecorresponding end portion of one 0 said main sections and adapted to bepivotally engaged therewith and to be disconnected therefrom, engagingmeans extending between said overlapping end-portions for lockin thesame against se aration longitudina ly of the rim when 't e parts are 1nnormal position, and a link pivotally connected at one end to theopposite end portion of said complemental section and at its oppositeend to the corresponding opposite end. portion of the main rim portionat a point somewhat removed from the extreme end of the latter and atthe inner side thereof.

9. A wheel rim having a peripheral tirereceiving groove and comprising apair of rigid, plvotally connected, main rim s'ec tions, and a rigid oomlemental rim-section having each of its on -portions overlapped by thecorresponding end-portions of said main sections, a link connected atone end to one end of said complemental section and at its opposite endto the inner side of the corresponding mainsection end portion at apoint removed from the extreme end of the atter, the opposite end ofsaid complementel section being arranged to be pivotally engaged withthe corresponding portion of the other main section, to permit thetoggle thus formed to be swung into normal position against the adjacentend-portions of said main rim-portion sections.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

TIMOTHY S. YORK.

Witness L. H. HARRIMAN.

copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe "Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. 0.

